There are many different methods for measuring physical dimensions of objects such as the human body. One of the most common is the manual method whereby the measurer takes certain measurements of a person utilizing a device such as a tape measure or the like. This type of measurement is time consuming, can be uncomfortable for the person being measured and may not yield totally accurate results. This discomfort to the person being measured can be from being touched by a relative stranger.
Other mechanical methods have also been used to measure the human body. One such method is the sliding gauge method which uses a multiplicity of parallel sliding bars each arranged perpendicular to a reference plane. These bars are brought into contact with the body being measured at their forward ends and the distances of the opposite ends from the reference plane are measured and analyzed with the use of a three-dimensional orthogonal coordinate system to obtain the measurements of the human body. This method is not desirable or comfortable because it requires that the parallel sliding bars come into contact with the person being measured.
Once a garment or similar object has been manufactured, similar mechanical methods must be used to inspect and measure the garment to insure that it is a desired size. In an automated factory, this type of mechanical inspection and measurement can cause undue delay and slow down the manufacturing process.
It is a principal feature of the present invention to mechanically and automatically measure a person without touching that person and digitize and store the information necessary to create a database that can be used to generate an ideal pattern for clothing for that person. A plurality of similarly sized persons can be measured using the method and apparatus of the present invention to generate a generic ideal clothing pattern for a class of persons, e.g. 6'0" tall, weighing 180 pounds, having a 34" waist and a 35" inseam. It is a further object of the present invention to automatically inspect garments which have been previously manufactured to make sure that their measurements are the same as an ideal pattern within a predetermined allowable tolerance.